CURRENT INTELLIGENCE BULLETIN - 1955/06/16

• Document Type: SPECIALCOLLECTION
• Collection: Current/Central Intelligence Bulletin Collection
• Document Number (FOIA) /ESDN (CREST): 03194473
• Release Decision: RIPPUB
• Original Classification: U
• Document Page Count: 7
• Document Creation Date: September 20, 2019
• Document Release Date: September 26, 2019
• Publication Date: June 16, 1955

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16 June 1955
Copy No.
99
CURRENT INTELLIGENCE BULLETIN
DOCUMENT NO. 60
NO CHANGE IN CLASS.
L I DECLASSIFIED
CLASS. CHANGED TO: TS S C
NEXT REVIEW DATE. 2010
AUTH: HR 70-2
DATE: A21146C2_ REVIEWER:.
Office of Current Intelligence
CENTRAL INTELLIGENCE AGENCY
SECTOP
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SUMMARY
SOVIET UNION
1. Comment on Soviet agricultural delegation to the United States
(page 3).
SOUTH ASIA
NEAR EAST - AFRICA
3. Naar states intention to seek arms from USSR (page 4).
LATIN AMERICA
4. Argentine political situation remains tense (page 5).
5. Invitations issued for MOSCOW conference on peaceful uses of
atomic energy (page 6).
6. Unusual Israeli army activity near Gaza strip reported (page 7).
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"Nse 'Now
SOVIET UNION
1. Comment on Soviet agricultural delegation to the United States:
The importance Soviet leaders attach to
the visit in July of an official delegation
to observe American agricultural meth-
o s s is c ear y evis en in the high administrative and technical po-
sitions occupied by the twelve members of the delegation. The
Soviet leaders are apparently hopeful of deriving important prac-
tical knowledge from the visit.
2.
The group is headed by First Deputy
Minister of Agriculture of the USSR V. V. Matskevich. It includes
Deputy Chairman of the State Commission for Long Range Planning
Saveloy; Deputy Minister of Automobile, Tractor, and Agricultural
Machine Building Yezhevsky; Ukrainian deputy premier Gureyev;
and outstanding Soviet agricultural scientists.
Party First Secretary Khrushchev has
repeatedly stressed the importance for the Soviet Union of learn-
ing and adopting the advanced methods of other countries. The
most important problem in the USSR today is the development of
agriculture.
16 June 55
SOUTH ASIA
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NEAR EAST - AFRICA
3. Nasr states intention to seek arms from USSR:
Prime Minister Nasr has told Ambassador
Byroade that Egypt is turning to the USSR
for military equipment. At the same time,
he asked about the possibility of purchas-
ing American arms.
Nasr indicated he was fully aware that
procurement of Soviet arms could be "dangerous to the Middle East."
He appeared convinced, however, that his immediate problem is to
protect Egypt from Israeli invasion and to assure himself of a con-
tinuous flow of supplies in the event of hostilities and an embargo
by France, Britain and the United States.
Comment: Nases statement may have been
Intended in part as a lever to obtain arms from the United States.
However, Egypt might be prepared to accept armaments from the
USSR, if they could be obtained on Cairo's terms. These include
barter payment in cotton and no foreign military technicians.
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TOr ET
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USSR would be willing to furnish heavy artillery items in exchange
for Egyptian cotton. The USSR, however, is not known to have
delivered arms outside the Sino-Soviet bloc to date.
LATIN AMERICA
4. Argentine political situation remains tense:
the government is "nervous"
and fears more serious trouble in view
of the "huge" participation in the 11 June
deirionstiation in Buenos Aires
The Communist Party is said to have
printed 30,000 pamphlets on behalf of "our Catholic comrades,"
with the reported objective of "keeping alive the spirit of rebellion
among Catholics."
� Comment: The Communists are also re-
ported trying to negotiate with the traditionally anticlerical Radical
Party, the major opposition to the Peron regime, for a joint cam-
paign aimed at "defending the Catholic church and forming a demo-
cratic front."
Peron refused a request made by speakers
at a large labor rally in Buenos Aires on 14 June to let labor handle
"current difficulties with the church." Several leaders of the power-
ful Peronista labor organization are reported as having repeatedly
urged the president to take a strong position against the church.
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NON
5. Invitations issued for Moscow conference on peaceful uses of
atomic energy:
Japanese
The national science academies of France,
Britain and Denmark have been invited to
send representatives to Moscow for a con-
ference from 1 to 5 July on the peaceful
uses of atomic energy. The French also
understand that an Italian group has been
invited. At least in the case of the French,
the conference would be followed by a two-
week trip through the USSR.
Comment: At least one American and one
scientist have been invited to attend the same conference.
There have been increasing indications
that the USSR has adopted a more liberal policy on releasing nuclear
information. A German scientist who recently returned from the
USSR said that he was told by a high Soviet atomic energy official
last March that the time had come for less secrecy in the Soviet
program. He added that Foreign Minister Molotov probably would
release much previously highly classified data at the Geneva con-
ference on the peaceful uses of atomic energy in August if the
United States would release comparable data. Soviet papers al-
ready submitted to the UN, however, suggest that the USSR will
continue to release data without regard to American action.
The USSR probably considers that a more
liberal policy in releasing nuclear information at this time will
strengthen its 10 May disarmament proposal, as well as its posi-
tion at the four-power conference and at the August conference on
atomic energy. Moscow probably also believes that such a declas-
sification of information will offset US nuclear revelations such as the
demonstration research reactor being constructed for the confer-
ence. The move will also support Moscow's claim to both Orbit
and non-Orbit states that the USSR leads in all phases of nuclear
energy development. (Concurred in by OS!)
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6. Unusual Israeli army activity near Gaza strip reported:
The American embassy and army attach�
staff in Tel Aviv report unusual Israeli
army activity near the Egyptian-held Gaza
strip,
On a tour of Israeli rear areas around the
strip, the assistant military attach�b-
served full field equipment in use, combat-
loaded vehicles, extensive laying of new
m u ca ons w re, much heavy equipment and bridging, and a
movement of reservists and oil tank trucks toward the south, The
assistant attach�stimates that five Israeli brigades were involved
In an operation which he feels was probably maneuvers, but which
from the scale of activity also suggested preparations for an actual
attack.
The embassy has noted indications that re-
servists in the southern area of Israel, as well as some in Tel Aviv,
have been called up. In its judgment, however, this does not neces-
sarily mean that Israel has decided to launch, an attack on the Egyp-
tian forces.
Comment: A full- scale attack on the
Egyptian position in the Gaza strip still seems unlikely. These ac-
tivities could be in preparation for a new "retaliatory" raid, against
which the Egyptians might react more strongly than they did last
February. It seems more likely, however, 'that they are part of
more extensive army maneuvers, some of which have also been ob-
served along the Israel-Jordan border.
In addition to preparing for any eventuality,
the Israelis may be seeking, by a demonstration of their strength,
to impress Egypt and the West with the necessity of the "high-level"
talks which Cairo is trying to avoid.
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